I read some really troubling news today. In the U.K., three out of every 10 children do not own any books — none! No bookcases in their bedroom with Where the Wild Things Are, The Little Prince, Harry Potter… No parents reading to them before they go to bed. I hope they at least borrow…
Read more
Today, I’ve got a great guest post on writing and researching from Kate Messner, author of Sugar & Ice, a Junior Library Guild Selection, Amazon.com Best Book for December and on the Winder 2010-2011 Kids IndieNext List. Here’s the synopsis of Kate’s book: For Claire Boucher, life is all about skating on the frozen cow…
Read more
Manuscript update: Terrible! Yesterday was the first day I have worked on my new book in two weeks. I’ve been busy with www.discdish.com. But, who am I kidding, I’ve also been just a little — ok a lot — intimidated by this story. My first two novels are plot-driven adventures, but this is a quiet…
Read more
Revision update: I’m done! Yay! Now I have to perfect my query letter. Today, I’ve got an interview with author and literary agent Mandy Hubbard. Mandy recently joined D4EO Literary, representing authors of middle-grade and teen fiction. She’s also the author Prada & Prejudice, You Wish and other novels that aren’t on shelves yet. Mandy’s…
Read more
Revision update: Chapter 28 out of 30. The rework idea I had for that chapter I was working on worked. Phew! Got three chapters to go to finish. First up today, news of a new agent. Former Delacorte Press/Random House Children Books editor Marissa Walsh has opened Shelf Life Literary, a boutique agency specializing in…
Read more
Revision update: Got three chapters done today. On chapter 26 of 30. My goal was to finish by tomorrow and I don’t think that will happen. Sigh. But I’ll finish it next week. This is my fifth and final post from the awesome Houston SCBWI conference. If you missed my earlier reports, Simon & Schuster…
Read more
I spent my Saturday at the fabulous Austin SCBWI conference, which offered a great lineup of speakers. Over the next week, or as long as it takes to cover them all, I’ll post what I heard. First up is literary agent Mark McVeigh, who has his own agency, The McVeigh Agency. Mark knows something about…
Read more
Revision update: Contrary to my lack of confidence yesterday, I buckled down and just finished my revision! Yay! Now on to beta reads. Fingers crossed. The 2010 ALSC Award winners were announced earlier this week and with them, they bring an opportunity. We all know that reading good books is one of the best ways…
Read more
Revision update: Almost done! Well, I’m about three quarters through. Maybe I can be done by the end of next week. Fingers crossed. The images coming out of Haiti this past week have been sobering to say the least. Seeing the damage caused by a natural disaster like this makes us feel small and helpless.…
Read more
Done today: Chapter 1 (four pages) Revision remaining: 165 pages Daily pages needed to be finished by end of November: 3.5 Finally got down to some good revision this morning. Phew! Does it feel good to be working with the book again. We’ve read that children’s books have been doing better than some other segments in this recession.…
Read more
